I.O.I girls return in different bands Former project group "I.O.I" member Jung Chae-yeon, second from left, performs her new group "DIA's" new song "You're Different" at YES24 LiveHall in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, last Tuesday. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunFormer popular project group “I.O.I,” formed from the TV show “Produce 101,” disbanded in January after their one-year contract ended, but the members are back in different girl groups, now competing against each other.Singer Jung Chae-yeon kicked off the competition in her new band “DIA” with a mini-album titled “Love Generation,” last Tuesday.The band performed the song “You’re Different,” which was entertaining to watch and listen to.“The track ‘Can’t Stop’ has an addictive verse that you cannot forget after you’ve listened to it and it is a powerful dance-pop genre song,” said member Jueun during their press conference at YES24 LiveHall in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, last week. “We performed our choreography with energy and drama on the stage to show how our style has changed frAug 28, 2017
Iconic folk singer Jo Dong-jin dies at 70 By Yun Suh-youngJo Dong-jin in an interview last year / YonhapFolk singer-songwriter Jo Dong-jin who had been fighting cancer died Monday. He was 70.Cho was found dead in his bathroom at home at 3:43 a.m. Monday, his sister Jo Dong-hee told Yonhap News Agency. She said he must have fainted due to a weak heart and weak physical state from old age and cancer. Jo was suffering stage-four bladder cancer."He was scheduled to have surgery at Korea University Medical Center and was to be hospitalized starting today. Everyone was happy that his concert next month was sold out but we were taken by surprise and sadness when he passed away suddenly," the sister said, Monday.Jo Dong-jin had a concert slated for Sept. 16 at KEPCO Art Center in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul, which was to be his first concert in 13 years.Jo debuted in 1966 as a guitarist and vocalist of jazz rock band Chagrin which mainly performed for the Eighth United States Army. In 1979 he made his official debut after releasing his self-titled first folk music album which became widely popular. The album was later honored as one oAug 28, 2017
Fans wield strong power on boy band 'Wanna One' “Wanna One,” the newly launched project K-pop boy band borne out of popular votes from the public through Mnet survival talent show “Produce 101: Season 2” / Courtesy of CJ E&M By Park Jin-haiFor an entire week after the debut album of the 11-member K-pop boy band “Wanna One” was released to local stores on Aug. 8, Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun saw an unusually long queue of female fans, excited to buy the band’s CDs.An impromptu market place was created as some 100 fans, who sat on the floor, started trading their collections of photo cards. Since each CD contains a random photo of one of the band’s members, fans waited hours to trade their cards for their favorites out of the eleven. “I’ve waited over two hours and finally succeeded,” said 17-year-old student Kim So-jin on an online message board.On the “Wanna One” fan website, some boast that they purchased over 100 albums to gain photo cards and increase their chances to participate in the band’s fan meeting. “Wanna OneAug 22, 2017
G-Dragon's new music video only available for thumb drive owners G-Dragon's USB solo ablum "Kwon Ji Yong" / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBy Kim Jae-heunRapper G-Dragon’s new music video for “Bullshit,” a track on his latest solo album “Kwon Ji Yong,” will be only available to those who purchase the album that was released in the form of a memory stick with a serial number.The album was released June 8 on a thumb drive, causing a dispute over whether to accept it as a real album or not. The memory stick does not contain any music files but will connect to YG Entertainment’s website where people can download tracks after inserting a serial number.Gaon Music Chart, a weekly music list officiated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, denied approving it as an official album.Gaon said it is sticking to its principle that only music recorded on a disc will be accepted as an “album” as there is a boundary that segments a digital chart, a download chart and an album chart.The categorization of music released in different formats is important as it decides the copyright payment to musicians.The Aug 22, 2017
TVXQ returns with solo tracks K-pop duo TVXQ’s members Max Changmin, left, and U-know Yunho pose during their first Asia Press Tour event at The Shilla Seoul, Monday. / YonhapK-pop duo to hold concerts in Korea, JapanBy Kim Jae-heunS.M. Entertainment’s popular K-pop duo TVXQ announced their first Asia Press Tour at a press conference in Seoul, Monday, and revealed their upcoming solo singles due out next month.The band debuted as a five-member act in 2003, but three members left the group, leaving U-Know Yunho and Max Changmin as a duo.This is their first official scheduled event together in two years after U-Know Yunho was discharged from the army in April and Max Changmin last Friday.The two will release new solo albums in the last week of September, which they have named “TVXQ Week.” During the week, U-Know Yunho will release “Drop” on Sept. 25 and Max Changmin will introduce his solo album on Sept. 29. U-Know Yunho has already showcased his new song during the sixth SMTOWN LIVE world tour concert in Seoul on July 8. Max Changmin will release his new track through S.M. EnterAug 21, 2017
INTERVIEW 'Korean fans are punk and more crazy': ex-Oasis leader Liam Gallagher / Courtesy of Live Nation KoreaFormer Oasis frontman to rock SeoulBy Park Jin-haiLiam Gallagher, former frontman of 1990’s iconic British band “Oasis,” will perform in Seoul, Tuesday.In the concert titled “Live Forever Long,” the singer with a voice often compared to that of John Lennon will sing old Oasis hits along with songs from his debut solo album “As You Were.” It has been five years since his group Beady Eye headlined the 2012 Jisan Valley Rock Festival and this is his first visit as a solo artist. “I’ve been doing this for longer than 25 years, I don’t think I’ve got anything more to prove than that. I just want to keep making music and sing songs for fans. I can’t do anything else,” said Gallagher, when asked what keeps him going in his post-Oasis and post-Beady Eye years during an interview with The Korea Times. “I still believe I’m probably one of the greatest rock ’n’ roll singers on the planet. So I just want to sing songs. I’m asAug 20, 2017
US pop star Ariana Grande denies 'unprofessional' Seoul concert accusation / Korea Times fileBy Park Si-soo Universal Music, the label representing scandal-ridden American pop star Ariana Grande, reacted to brewing criticism over her alleged unprofessional attitude and disregard for the fans at her Seoul concert last Tuesday. In a statement on Friday, the company denied allegations that the singer’s unnoticed late arrival to Seoul and to the concert venue, and her consequent skipping of rehearsal, reflected that she disregarded her Korean fans and hosted the sold-out concert without a sincere commitment. The label claimed “everything she did during the Seoul concert was the same as she had done at other concerts.” The following is an excerpt of the Q&A format statement released by Universal Music. Q. Did she host a poorly prepared, unprofessional concert? Did she disregard her Korean fans? A. The Seoul concert was part of her World Tour. The stage design, setting and performance format were exactly the same compared with those of her previous concerts. She was supposed to sing “Dangerous Woman” as an encore aAug 19, 2017
Taeyang calls latest solo album his best Singer Tae Yang / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBy Kim Jae-heunTaeyang, best known as a member of idol group BIGBANG, brought back his solo project, introducing what he calls the best album of his career, “White Night,” Wednesday.After achieving a career-high with his previous solo album “Rise” _ which became the third-highest-charting K-pop album and the highest-charting K-pop album by a Korean solo musician on the Billboard 200 in 2014 _ the singer felt his next solo project would have to be better prepared than ever.“The song Eyes, Nose, Lips included in my last album received so much love and now people have higher expectations for my next album. I had to prepare a lot,” Taeyang said during his press conference for the new album at D Museum in Hannam-dong, Seoul. “I enjoyed working on my album and it wasn’t a burdensome process. I had the chance to work with new producers and seek a new music style with the new album.”Working with new producers did not change Taeyang’s music style but rather helped him dig deeper into whatAug 16, 2017
Korean student wins brass competition on Jeju Kim Hyun-ho, a student at the Baty Brass Academy run by the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO), won in the trumpet section of the 2017 Jeju International Brass Competition which was held Aug. 8 to 16 on Jeju Island.For the trumpet section, 66 trumpet players from around the world competed. Kim has been a student at the Baty Brass Academy since 2014 and entered the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMD de Paris) in 2015 as the first Korean brass instrument player. Baty Brass Academy is an academy run by leading trumpet player Alexandre Baty under his name since 2013. Baty has been with the SPO since 2011.The Jeju International Brass Competition has four competition sections _ tenor trombone, horn, trumpet and quintet. It is an international competition registered since 2009 with the World Federation of International Music Competitions. Aug 16, 2017
NGOSKA Fest takes to Sinchon's streets Wataru Buster, lead singer of Japanese band Oi-Skall Mates, points at someone while performing as the headlining act at New Generation of Ska Fest 2016 in Club SHARP on Aug. 27, 2016. / Korea Times photo by Jon DunbarBy Jon DunbarPromoting underground music is a labor of love, and nobody has labored harder nor loved more than the people behind Seoul’s fourth annual New Generation of Ska (NGOSKA) Festival.U.S. punk legends Suicide Machines will headline the show this Saturday, supported by Japanese ska bands Rollings and Coquettish and seven more Korean ska and ska-punk bands.“This year, Seoul City helped us out with some funding,” festival organizers said. “Every year we had to ask our friends for financial support, which we never really wanted to do since the first festival. Our minds are still the same as they were the first time.”The festival returns this year to Yonsei-ro, the car-free street running between Sinchon Station on Line 2 and Yonsei University’s front gate. It was there four years ago in 2014 when the Bruce Lee Band, fronted bAug 15, 2017
